[ba-unrev-talk] Digital Rights Patent

http://jya.com/ms-drm-os.htm(01)"This invention relates generally to computer operating systems, and more
particularly to booting and identifying an operating system that enforces
digital rights" (02)"The unusual property of digital content is that the publisher (or
reseller) gives or sells the content to a client, but continues to restrict
rights to use the content even after the content is under the sole physical
control of the client. For instance, a publisher will typically retain
copyright to a work so that the client cannot reproduce or publish the work
without permission. A publisher could also adjust pricing according to
whether the client is allowed to make a persistent copy, or is just allowed
to view the content online as it is delivered. These scenarios reveal a
peculiar arrangement. The user that possesses the digital bits often does
not have full rights to their use; instead, the provider retains at least
some of the rights. In a very real sense, the legitimate user of a computer
can be an adversary of the data or content provider. "Digital rights
management" is therefore fast becoming a central requirement if online
commerce is to continue its rapid growth. Content providers and the
computer industry must quickly provide technologies and protocols for
ensuring that digital content is properly handled in accordance with the
rights granted by the publisher. If measures are not taken, traditional
content providers may be put out of business by widespread theft, or, more
likely, will refuse altogether to deliver content online. (03)Traditional security systems ill serve this problem. There are highly
secure schemes for encrypting data on networks, authenticating users,
revoking certificates, and storing data securely. Unfortunately, none of
these systems address the assurance of content security after it has been
delivered to a client's machine. Traditional uses of smart cards offer
little help. Smart cards merely provide authentication, storage, and
encryption capabilities. Ultimately, useful content must be assembled
within the host machine for display, and again, at this point the bits are
subject to theft. Cryptographic coprocessors provide higher-performance
cryptographic operations, and are usually programmable but again,
fundamentally, any operating system or sufficiently privileged application,
trusted or not, can use the services of the cryptographic processor. (04)There appear to be three solutions to this problem. One solution is to do
away with general-purpose computing devices and use special-purpose
tamper-resistant boxes for delivery, storage, and display of secure
content. This is the approach adopted by the cable industry and their
set-top boxes, and looks set to be the model for DVD-video presentation.
The second solution is to use secret, proprietary data formats and
applications software, or to use tamper-resistant software containers, in
the hope that the resulting complexity will substantially impede piracy.
The third solution is to modify the general-purpose computer to support a
general model of client-side content security and digital rights management. (05)This invention is directed to a system and methodology that falls generally
into the third category of solutions. " (06)